Rating: 
Summary: Big Disappointment
Review: Unless you want to learn about mass tort law, skip this book. It's boring. The main character isn't even likeable! A great disappointment and waste of money.
Rating: 
Summary: Where's volume 2?
Review: "John Grisham" envokes thoughts of solid, fast paced, legal mystery books which evelope the reader and hold him/her steadfast in the plot until the last word. This book MUST have been written by someone else. As someone else has stated here, the books is a great introduction to the world of mass torts (while I have to say, much much simplified - most companies don't just roll over as they do in this book) it lacks the compelling tension that marked other Grisham novels before it. I kept turning pages for one reason - to get to where the plot thickened. The character of Max Pace is well done, but then left out to dry off, unused. The romantic element, which is so well laid out in the beginning, falls flat on its face. I would have been happy to read 5 or 6 more chapters if Mr. G would have continued with the structure he started with. It was like writing the blueprint for the Sistine Chapel design and then calling Maaco to finish up. The beginning is well scripted, lays an amazing foundation and then sputters to a pathetic close, which left me unfulfilled.
Rating:
Summary: Where's the beef
Review: Like many of Grisham's recent works, this one disappointed mightly. The first 3/4 of the work was interesting although many questions were left unanswered. The ending is where I really felt disappointed and betrayed. It's as though he's writing to a certain page count and suddenly realized he only has a few pages left and so abruptly cuts to the end. I thoroughly enjoyed his earlier books which were well developed all the way through but his more recent efforts have displayed a tendency to just throw out some ending to meet either a page count limit or a publisher's deadline. DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK. Use the copy from your local library if you want to read it. One can only hope that this once interesting author will put more effort into his future efforts.
Rating: 
Summary: The King of Legal Thrillers
Review: Grisham is a little like Clay Carter, his protagonist in the King of Torts. He has risen to the top of the legal thriller genre, indeed, he is King, although more recent books have hinted at his possible downfall. Yet Grisham remains at the top of his game with King of Torts. His characterization and plot development is just complex enough to be enjoyed by the masses. (Albeit, there are some slight faults in the plot that a close reader will pick up.) Overall, King of Torts is a predictable but enjoyable (and timely) thriller.
Rating:
Summary: textbook with a plot
Review: If you want to learn a whole lot about mass tort litigation, this is an excellent starting point. The writing is digestible, mildly entertaining, and thoroughly believable. However, if you want a good yarn along with your education (which is what most readers have come to expect from Grisham), pick up a different book. The blurb on the dusk jacket is thoroughly misleading. This is not a story about a burned out young lawyer's uncovery of a conspiracy. On the contrary, the conspiracy appears and disappears very early in the novel, and while you keep expecting closure, you never get it. Max Pace, the mysterious mover and shaker of the book, is never explained or even fully identified with a real name. He repeatedly delivers insider tips to our protagonist and finally vanishes without a trace. I kept waiting for the "so what?" of the book, and it just didn't happen. Furthermore, I did not find a single major character in the story sympathetic. The lawyer protagonist is a man with just enough conscience to feel really bad, but not enough of a backbone to turn down money in order to do the right thing. Rebecca, the love interest, is a completely unsurprising, flat character. I kept waiting for either of them to do something that would make me care what happens to them, and they didn't. On the other hand, I'm not sorry I read the book. I learned a whole lot about mass torts. Just be aware before you buy that this is basically a textbook with a plot.
Rating:
Summary: Predicatable, hackneyed
Review: As a past fan, I looked forward to reading the latest from Grisham. Alas he is no doubt under contract to produce a new title every so often and this one was written with an eye toward little other than fulfilling his obligation to his publisher. All the worse for his readers! The mental machinations of the main character defied explanation and the plot was obvious from the get-go. One spent the first half of the book hoping for an unexpected "gotcha" and the last half dreading what had by then become the inevitable predictable outcome.
Rating: 
Summary: Grisham at his best
Review: This book grabbed me the minute I opened it. This is Grisham at his best. The King of Torts is not only a mezmerizing read, but a learning tool. Can't wait for the next Grisham book.
Rating:
Summary: 300 pages and counting.....
Review: This book has 72 pages left to get good. My wife gave me this book for Valentine's day, and I'm laboring to finish it. I have all of JG's books since the very beginning because I'm a fellow Mississippian. I even have an autographed copy of "The Client." "The King of Torts" - no mystery, no redeeming qualities in characters, no intrigue - the most boring book I've read in years. Why do I keep buying his books? In the hopes that I'll be pleasantly surprised which hasn't happened in years (with the lone exception being "A Painted House")!
Rating:
Summary: FROM RAGS TO RICHES AND BACK AGAIN
Review: AN exciting story that will educate you about ... tortlawyers in a way you won't forget.Many people don't understand the word let alone what a King of Torts would be. This is a FIVE STAR education in which you will love JCCarter II, hate him and then like him in the end. Carter never tried a case in court and now never will.As a public defender and as a tort lawyer he settled all cases out of court. By inside info he signed upthousands of people who were hurt by a new drug on the market that had long range ill effects on some of the people taking them. Who was responsible: the drug companies, the FDA and the doctor prescribing the drugs too soon and too eagerly. Who suffered: the patient and the family. Who profited: the drug co. Who made the most money: the tort lawyer by getting awards of $15,000 per claiment while taking as much as 40% per claiment in fees. This effort resulted in his annual income hitting hundreds of million of dollars, some of which was used to pay his overhead expenses. You will follow Grisham's easy flowing story about how Carter rises to the top,falls victim to greed in spite of himself and how he handles his own self and others on the way down. This is one legal story that you can read without getting bogged down in all the legalese that abounds in too many legal-court battles....one you can enjoy for a change.
Rating: 
Summary: A crash course in tort law is right, Lawrence!
Review: See Lawrence M. Bernardo's review of March 25th. I agree with every word he wrote in reviewing this book so I won't write it again. I will add that the book was interesting and the reader learns a lot about tort law, class action lawsuits, and the pharmaceutical industry. One will never start a new drug again without stopping to think of what the long-term effects could be. It's a chance we all take because we have no choice. It was a fast read, but lacked something - as Mr. Bernardo's mentions, he goes off in a different direction, after Tequila Watson's case and takes the reader through this crash course. The ending just kind of stops. I expected more, especially in the ending, but I think he was being realistic, unfortunately some things in life don't get resolved. I own the hard cover, but would recommend waiting for the paper back release or library book.
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